It’s been really wet in the Luangwa over the last month! We are in the middle of our rainy season, so it’s normal for the river to be high and for the lagoons to be full. But the Luangwa drains such a vast area of Zambia, that rainfall coinciding across the region with high water in the Zambezi can cause the river to flood out of its channel.
This river flood is crucial for maintaining the rich, alluvial soil of the Luangwa Valley and an occasional flood helps to clear some channels, while silting up others; all part of the natural life of a free-flowing river. But for those of us who live here year-round, and those who are running or looking after camps, it is a bit more challenging. We have to decide when it’s time to move vehicles to higher ground, whether we should lift equipment into the roof-spaces and at what point loss of electricity to pump clean water means we have to move out of our houses!
This last weekend, the water reached the highest I have seen it in 10 years. I missed a huge flood that occurred in 2007 which caused considerable damage, and we all hoped that this would not be a repeat of that experience. The water rose 120cm at home during Friday, and a little more on Saturday, but then thankfully started to recede! Once the threat of a flood had subsided, it was time to get out and enjoy the incredible beauty of the flooded Valley.
The water was too high to drive out this weekend so all these photos are taken from the area around our house. Hoping to be able to get the vehicle out tomorrow so I can get into the National Park!
